Good day! below are News stories across Nigeria and Abroad:
1. The Supreme Court of Nigeria has restrained the Federal Government from implementing the February 10 Deadline for the old 200, 500 and 1000 naira notes to stop being legal tenders. Three northern states — Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara — had in a motion ex-parte filed on February 3rd, by their lawyer, AbdulHakeem Mustapha (SAN), prayed the apex court to halt the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) naira redesign policy. CHANNELS
2. An emergency meeting of the Council of State, convened by President Muhammadu Buhari will hold on Friday to discuss national crises including petrol and naira scarcity, insecurity and others ahead of the general elections. The national crises had led to protests in various parts of the country. The governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria is expected to provide an update on the new currency redesign policy scheduled to take place at the Council Chambers, Presidential Villa, Abuja, at 10 am. DAILY POST
3. As the 2023 elections draw near, tension grows as two Nigerian musicians, Seun Kuti and Peter Okoye, of the P-Square group, trade words on social media. The issue started when Kuti said he believes that no politician can save Nigeria except for Nigerians themselves. He went on to say that Peter Obi is an opportunist who switched to the Labour Party after losing the PDP primaries. The comment struck a nerve with Okoye, who has been an avid supporter of the Obi movement. Reacting he insulted Kuti’s music career, calling him a Grammy nominee who is still living in the trenches. PULSE
4. A court in Rwanda has fined a man 900 dollars after he pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter over the death of a journalist who was critical of the government.
John Williams Ntwali was killed last month when a speeding vehicle hit the motorcycle on which he was a passenger. The authorities said it was a traffic accident. BBC
5. As the naira scarcity persists, some banks are shutting their branches over rising customer attacks, according to findings. This came a day after the Lagos State Police Command issued a warning that some groups were planning to unleash violence in the state due to the naira scarcity. PUNCH
6. The U.S. would act to protect itself should China threaten its sovereignty, U.S. President Joe Biden said in his State of the Union address on Tuesday. Biden said he was committed to working with China where it could advance U.S. interests and benefit the world. The U.S. on Sunday shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon, which had been flying over the country for days, with a missile off the Atlantic coast of South Carolina. Biden said had made it clear to China’s President Xi Jinping that the U.S. sought competition, not conflict. PULSE
7. Footballer Christian Atsu has been pulled from the rubble of a building with injuries after the earthquake in Turkey. Atsu who plays for Hatayspor was trapped after the earthquake that have killed at least 8000 people. The Ghana forward, 31, played 107 games for Newcastle and has had spells with Chelsea, Everton and Bourne mouth.Hatayspor sporting director Taner Savut is still in the collapsed building. BBC
8. LeBron James has become the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s 39-year-old record. The Los Angeles Lakers star, James, 38, hit 38 points in a 133-130 defeat by the Oklahoma City Thunder to surpass Abdul-Jabbar’s mark of 38,387. Abdul-Jabbar initially broke the scoring record in April 1984, eight months before James was born. “To be able to be in the presence of a legend as great as Kareem, it means so much to me,” said James. DAILY TRUST
9. About 817 prospective candidates are to re-register for the 2023 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) over infractions. The decision by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) followed the invalidation of the examination registrations done by the candidates and their Computer Based Test centers. PULSE
